Kato Mili windmills above Little Venice in Mykonos
Published on 08/21/2026 at 06:10 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
Kato Mili is the name given to the whitewashed windmills that rise above the waterfront quarter known as Little Venice in Mykonos Town on the island of Mykonos in Greece. Their forms date back to the sixteenth century, when the island lay under Venetian influence and grain milling was a central part of the local economy, and they remain one of the clearest surviving pieces of that era in the Cyclades.
Windmills on the hill between Alefkandra and Neochori
The Kato Mili windmills stand on a low hill at the southern edge of Mykonos Town, between the harbour area of Alefkandra and the Neochori neighbourhood, overlooking the Aegean Sea and the houses of Little Venice below.Situated between Alefkandra and Neochori the rise forms a natural viewing platform across the bay and towards the broader townscape of Chora, as locals call the main settlement.The windmills stand on a small hill southeast of Chora
Seven cylindrical windmill structures are preserved in this Kato Mili cluster, forming a straight line along the ridge above the sea and the waterfront tavern-lined lanes below.Seven windmills are located in the area of Kato Mili Their white plastered walls and simple caps stand against the blue of sea and sky, and from the hill the view reaches across the harbour and out towards the open water of the central Aegean.
From Venetian-era milling to landmark status
The windmills of Kato Mili belong to a wider group of traditional mills that once worked across Mykonos, a network that is documented as operating from the sixteenth century into the early twentieth century.Most of the windmills were constructed during the sixteenth century and worked into the twentieth century Many of the island’s mills were built under Venetian rule, harnessing the strong north winds of the Cyclades to grind wheat and other grains into flour for local use and for provision ships travelling through the archipelago.The windmills were built by Venetian rulers in the sixteenth century and used to grind grain
Historical accounts describe a period when more than twenty-five windmills stood on Mykonos, with around ten forming the original Kato Mili complex facing the harbour of Alefkandra.Over twenty-five windmills once operated on Mykonos, ten in the Kato Mili complex Grain milled there supplied local bakeries and was used to produce hard rusks, known as paximadi, that were transported to ships stopping at Mykonos and served as durable food for sailors journeying between islands.Flour from the mills fed a trade in paximadi rusks Milling ceased in the twentieth century as steam and electric machinery took over, and the surviving structures at Kato Mili are maintained as heritage monuments rather than working industrial buildings.By the mid twentieth century milling had ceased and the windmills were restored as heritage monuments
Whitewashed forms and the seafront setting
Architecturally, the Kato Mili windmills follow the typical Cycladic pattern: compact, upright volumes with thick masonry walls plastered in white, rising above a stone base and capped by simple roofs from which wooden arms once projected to carry the sails.The Mykonos windmills are whitewashed cylindrical structures on a low hill Many of the external features associated with milling have disappeared or been reduced to remnants, but the basic geometry and orientation towards the wind remain visible in the surviving buildings at Kato Mili.
Their position above Little Venice brings water, stone and compact architecture into a single view, with the line of mills marking the transition from the tightly packed waterfront houses to the more open hillside above.Kato Mili forms a postcard shot of a line of windmills above Little Venice For visitors walking up from Alefkandra, the hill offers an elevated vantage point over the sea-facing facades, the small harbour and the broader sweep of Mykonos Town, with the white cylinders of the mills acting as a repeated vertical rhythm along the ridge.
Visiting Kato Mili: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- Kato Mili lies on the low hill above the Alefkandra waterfront of Mykonos Town on the island of Mykonos in Greece, reached on foot from the lanes of Chora that lead towards the sea-facing quarter known as Little Venice.
- The hill where the windmills stand rises gently above the harbour, and reaching the line of structures involves a short walk up paved paths and steps from the surrounding streets.
- The area around Kato Mili is part of the built-up fabric of Mykonos Town, with the sea on one side and compact houses on the other, so visiting the windmills sits naturally alongside time spent in the lanes of Alefkandra and the nearby waterfront.
- The official language is Greek and the currency is the euro.
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Frequently asked questions about Kato Mili
Where is Kato Mili located on Mykonos?
Kato Mili stands on a small hill at the edge of Mykonos Town in Greece, between the harbour of Alefkandra and the Neochori neighbourhood overlooking Little Venice.
What can visitors expect when they go up to the windmills?
Visitors find a row of preserved whitewashed windmill structures on the hill, reached by short paths and steps, with wide views over the Aegean and the compact waterfront streets below.
What makes Kato Mili distinctive among the sights of Mykonos?
The Kato Mili windmills combine sixteenth-century milling architecture with a seafront position above Little Venice, linking Mykonos’ maritime grain-trading past to the present-day townscape in a single view.
